Theme Thursday – Bands I Want To See Live

Other than listening to metal, one of my other favorite things to do is going to live shows and listen to it at ear-numbing decibel levels. Being 39 and having a job has given me ample time and decent resources to see shows wherever I have lived at that moment in time. Location has also been a huge factor. Growing up near Boston, MA and living in San Antonio, TX, Northern California, and England has made things much easier to catch my favorite bands. For that, I am very thankful yet, some bands still elude me. I have managed to catch Megadeth 14 times, Slayer 10 times, and Dream Theater 5 times, plus many others multiple times, but for some reason others have slipped away; some by no fault other than my own. This list is of bands I have yet to see live and still want to see live very much. If you have seen these bands live and think I shouldn’t go, let me know.

Probably the number one reason I didn’t attend a show was the lack of interest in going alone. For the most part, I have gotten over that and got used to going alone. I don’t let that stop me anymore, but to take on a show during the workweek leaves me in a position where I need a little nudge from another willing participant. I know that the next day of work will be long and tiring and I guess it’s easier when someone else feels the post-show aftermath with me.

Helloween is a prime example of missing out on an opportunity. They played a night in 2009 (London) where the next day involved getting up and going to work. I think it was a Sunday. The opening act was Stratovarius which meant the entire evening would have probably been quite entertaining. I don’t ever remember having an opportunity to Helloween ever before, so this was my first shot and I let it pass. I probably will not do that again. I have been a long-time Helloween fan, since Keeper of the Seven Keys Part II; seeing them live would have been a memorable time for me.

I have never been a huge fan of Motorhead. In fact, I wouldn’t really say I am much a fan at all, though I have tremendous respect for what they have done for metal. After all, Lemmy (and the band) influenced the likes of the Big Four bands. Well, before I caught on, I realized that Motorhead does an annual UK tour every November. The first two years I missed it, and then last year it was cancelled if I remember correctly. This year, Motorhead is about to embark on another UK tour this time with Anthrax opening. Damn! What a cool show that is going to be…only we move from England in October. Another miss L At the end of the day, seeing Motorhead for me would be more of an iconic experience.

I have had several chances to see Faith No More and passed them up for one reason or another. The last time was because they played Download 2009 and I didn’t like the overall set for that day they played. It’s a pricey day-ticket when there are only one or two bands that make the day. This year, however, Faith No More was slated to play Sonisphere 2012 UK. I decided that show was going to be the one. I was primed to buy my ticket no matter who was playing that day because I already missed a chance and decided that Faith No More was probably only going to sparsely tour in the future. Then, Sonisphere UK cancelled the festival. After the cancellation it was revealed that they would play a couple shows in London during the same time period. I kept this in the back of my mind, but when I finally decided to buy tickets, they were sold out.

Like Motorhead, I wouldn’t say I am a huge fan of Marilyn Manson. For me, I want to see what the show is all about; to see the shock-rocker live I imagine would be an entertaining experience. My favorite albums from Manson are Antichrist Superstar and Mechanical Animals. As with Faith No More at Sonisphere, Marilyn Manson was slated to play that same day, but the festival was cancelled. This would have been a great opportunity to kill two birds with one stone. Manson also played a show in London during the same time-frame which I lost track of and was sold out before I thought to buy a ticket. They had Lacuna Coil as the opener for which I never saw live either and would like to. Despite what I have already been able to see this year, these two shows (or the one cancelled festival) would have been milestone shows for me. And through my own doing; I missed everything.

Rush. Need I say more?

Last and certainly not least, I had a few chances to see Slipknot and passed them up. I love the Iowa album, but other than that I would say I am a moderate fan of the band. Obviously, I would like to see their live show; it looks intense from the DVD Disasterpieces. I have heard otherwise, but for the sake of seeing their stage performance I hope to get another chance to see them. They did play Sonisphere 2011, but the Big Four trumped that for my one-day pass.

These are just a few of the bands I have missed over time and would jump at the chance to have another go. Have you seen or want to see these bands also. I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Have a great day and I hope you enjoyed this week’s theme.

Right now Rush and Faith No More at the top of my ‘must see’ list. I’m hoping Rush adds an Italian date for their upcoming Clockwork Angels tour. I promised myself not to miss that for the world. I’ve seen multiple iterations of Mike Pattons other bands like Mr. Bungle, Fantomas, and Mondo Cane, but never FNM. Must fix that. They played in Milan a few days after I officially moved here, but monetary constraints held me back. I was about to put myself in the hole for that show, but better judgement won over ;)

I’ve seen Marylin Manson live before, and while his music isn’t my cup of tea, he puts on a great show. Slipknot I’ve seen live a few times, and they seem to have digressed in live quality. They are at their best at smaller venues.

And I was at that Helloween/Stratovarius tour and it was great. If it makes you feel any better Timo Kotipello (spelling?) was just coming off an illness, so his vocals weren’t up to par, but he did a good enough job anyway.

That video clip of Rush I posted was from a show in my very own hometown in N.H. I guess I was destined to miss that one since I dont live there anymore. I can help you with a few of these. Ghost is great to see, but they don’t really do anything on stage probably due to their costumes. Though, the chilled attitude on stage adds to their mistique and suits their style of music. I have seen Testament 5-or 6 times…one of the first genuine thrash bands I have seen live. Chuck is a great frontman and they rock pretty hard live, I think you should definitely try to be present the next time they come to shred a venue near you.

Porcupine Tree would be great to see. I think they just came here recently, but I wasn’t able to go. I would love to see a Porcupine Tree, Katatonia, Opeth tour.

Because I’m born in 88 the list of bands i like to see would be nearly endless, because many of the bands doesn’t exist anymore: Pantera, Queen, Nirvana, White Zombie, Nudeswirl, all the 70s bands etc. Some bands like Pearl Jam, are playing only one show all one or two years in Berlin, which would mean I have to travel severeal hundred kilometers bidirectional to see a concert for 40 to 60 Euros.

Then there are bands I’m not sure if I want to see them NOW like AC/DC oder Black Sabbath with Ozzy, because I don’t like arena shows with 10.000 thousands of people and a 9 meter stage pit etc., and the feeling not to be sure if the band can still deliver the goods. Some bands I would like to have seenin their early days like Judas Preist or Slipknot for example.

Primordial, Rival Sons, Saint Jude are some bands I hope to see in the near future.